Chinese Espionage Single Biggest Threat to American Technology

Chinese intelligence activity presents the only largest threat to American technology sector, stated a congressional advisory panel. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission's annual report charged Beijing of running an intense espionage plan to obtain vital American technology and assuming negative techniques, comprising online strikes, to aim American infrastructure, as reported on November 15, 2007 by Times on Line.

The Chinese military has adopted in its plans destructive war techniques, subsuming the application of online strikes which, when implemented tactically, could have disastrous results on the target nations' vital infrastructure, the advisory panel informed.

According to the commission, Chinese spying activities in the US are so large that they pose the single largest threat to the safety of the US technologies, reported China Views on November 15, 2007.

The panel is also worried about the growing capability of the Chinese military to destruct satellites and to perpetrate Internet strikes against a wide range of government as well as civilian computer networks in the US, stated Chairman Carolyn Bartholomew, according to AFP on November 15, 2007.

A newspaper report at the start of 2007 had alleged that the Chinese military had effectively gained unauthorized access to the computer network of the US armed forces. China's military perpetrated its online strike in June 2007 after trying for months, the Financial Times informed. China has firmly repudiated allegations that its military was responsible for hacking into the US defense department's computers.

Authorities had informed the newspaper that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) carried out the strike and it had resulted in the closedown of a computing system working in the Defense Secretary Robert Gates' office.

The panel has demanded greater security of the US computer networks after the alleged unlawful breach of the US military network by the Chinese military. The commission advised the US Congress to analyze the intelligence, military, and national security agendas that supervise and defend vital US computer networks and classified data, especially those assigned with defending networks from harm resulting from online strikes.

The panel also demanded strengthening of steps to defend vital US computer networks and classified data from harm by hackers.